Foxpaw's Destiny
by Deserttail
Summary: After being rejected by Cinderheart, Lionblaze returns to Heathertail and after some talking she takes him back. Their kits are apprentices and one of them is chosen by Starclan for a journey that could help save all the clans. Rated T for later on.
1. Chapter 1

**These are just the allegiances at the beginning of my story. **

**Summary: After being rejected by Cinderheart, Lionblaze returns to Heathertail and after some talking she takes him back. Their kits are apprentices and one of them is chosen by Starclan for a journey that could help save all the clans.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Warriors, any charcters currently not found in the books are mine and so is this storyline but other than that it belongs to Erin Hunter**

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><p>Allegiances:<p>

Windclan:

Leader: Onestar – brown tabby tom

Deputy: Whitetail – small white she-cat

Medicine cat: Kestralflight – mottled gray tom

Apprentice: Blackpaw

Warriors:

Crowfeather – dark gray tom

Apprentice: Foxpaw

Owlwhisker – light brown tabby tom

Whiskerfur – light brown tom

Nightcloud – black she-cat

Leaftail – dark tabby tom with amber eyes

Apprentice: Gorsepaw

Antpelt – brown tom with one black ear

Emberfoot – gray tom with two dark paws

Heathertail – light brown tabby she-cat with blue eyes

Breezepelt – black tom with amber eyes

Apprentice: Rabbitpaw

Furzeclaw – gray and white she-cat

Boulderpelt – large pale gray tom

Sunstrike – tortoiseshell she-cat with large white mark on her forehead

Apprentice: Eaglepaw

Apprentices:

Blackpaw – black she-cat with amber eyes; daughter of Heathertail and Breezepelt

Foxpaw – red tom with a white tipped tail and two white front paws, green eyes; son of Heathertail and Breezepelt

Rabbitpaw – light brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes

Eaglepaw – dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes

Gorsepaw – light grey she-cat with blue eyes

Queens:

Sedgewhisker – light brown tabby she-cat; mother of Sunkit (very light brown she-cat) and Nightkit (Dark gray black she-cat)

Swallowtail – dark gray she-cat (expecting Emberfoot's kits)

Elders:

Weaselfur – ginger tom with white paws, retired early due to unhealing injury

Tornear – tabby tom

Thunderclan:

Leader: Firestar - ginger tom with a flame-coloured pelt

Deputy: Brackenfur – golden brown tom

Medicine cat: Jayfeather – gray tabby tom with blind blue eyes

Warriors:

Lionblaze – golden tabby tom with amber eyes

Dovewing – pale gray she-cat with blue eyes

Ivypool – silver and white tabby she-cat with dark blue eyes

Cinderheart – gray tabby she-cat

Leafpool – light brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes

Elders:

Brambleclaw – dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes; retired early due to blindness

Shadowclan:

Leader: Blackstar – large white tom with huge jet black paws

Deputy: Rowanclaw – ginger tom

Medicine cat: Littlecloud – very small tabby tom

Warriors:

Oakfur – small brown tom

Tawnypelt – tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes

Tigerheart – dark brown tabby tom

Queens:

Dawnpelt – cream furred she-cat

Riverclan:

Leader: Mistystar – gray she-cat with blue eyes

Deputy: Reedwhisker – black tom

Medicine cat: Willowshine – gray tabby she-cat

Warriors:

Minnowtail – dark gray she-cat

Hollowmist – dark brown tabby tom

Robinwing – tortoiseshell and white tom


	2. Chapter 2

**Here's the first chapter of this story! Hope you enjoy it!**

**Disclaimer: Just like before I do not own Warriors, only some of the cats found in this story are mine.**

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><p>The light of dawn spread over the Windclan camp, warming each of the cats that slept under the stars. Foxpaw leapt to his paws by the apprentice bush and stretched. He saw his sister appear from the medicine cat den for a moment before disappearing back into it, her amber eyes glowing with excitement.<p>

A purr ran through him as he remembered their mother's promise to them the sun before, that they would get to meet a very special friend of hers. Every possible option went through his head once again. Was it a cat from another clan? Or a rogue or loner? Maybe even a kitty-pet, but he doubted this one the most. She had told them that it was a very big secret and he dared not reveal what he was thinking to any other cat.

"Foxpaw," Crowfeather, his mentor, yowled from the entrance to camp. "Time for the dawn patrol."

Sighing, Foxpaw followed his mentor out into the moorlands. Yes this afternoon his mother would take him to meet this friend, for now he had to do the best for his clan. Whitetail, the clan deputy, joined them and then headed for the Thunderclan border.

Foxpaw's heart raced as he ran over the heather, as fast as any Windclan cat, and wondered how the other clans could live with trees blocking their way and their view of the sky and Starclan. Of course as they closed in on the border the moor turned to the forest that Thunderclan hunt in. Windclan owned part of the forest to a small stream that marked the border. He had been taught to hunt here among the trees but much preferred hunting somewhere else.

"What can you smell?" Whitetail said as she opened her own mouth to scent the area.

Concentrating Foxpaw opened his mouth and instantly caught the scent of the Thunderclan scent marks. Wrinkling his nose because of the foul scent that had a hint of the forest, he replied, "Thunderclan have just finished patrolling this part of the border and they headed towards the lake. Stale fox scent from a few days ago heading towards the Moonpool and plenty of prey on both territories."

"Very good," Crowfeather said, a bit curtly.

The young apprentice was used to his mentor's temper and bitterness so he didn't take any offense. With all the clans on the verge of war with each other due to the sudden distrust that had erupted just before he was born, a lot of cats were stressed and reacted with a sharp tongue when spoken too. At least he'd heard stories of times of peace and happiness, and even a few seasons ago that the medicine cats got together every half moon to go to the Moonpool.

Whitetail looked more impressed. Foxpaw liked the white she-cat, unlike most of the warriors, she had a level head and took everything into consideration before making a decision and she was gentle around him and his littermate if they made a mistake. It was obvious why Onestar had chosen her as deputy when Ashfoot had died of a late case of greencough last leaf-bare.

She led them away from the lake, which shone in the early morning sun of Greenleaf. Grinning, Foxpaw ran ahead before coming to a sudden halt. A sudden feeling of dread had entered him. Something was wrong but he couldn't put his paw on it.

"What's wrong? Did you see anything?" Whitetail stopped beside him, her blue eyes glowing with concern.

"No, just a feeling," he whispered back, his eyes following Crowfeather as the older tom stalked past them and further up the border.

She nodded, "the darkness is growing in the clans and though not much has come of it yet it will soon. I don't think what the clans have to fear is the other clans; something even more sinister is at work here."

She padded away from him. The young ginger tom stared after her in shock. Was what she was saying true? He felt the truth in her words and it scared him.

"Foxpaw are you just going to stand there until you turn into a tree or would you like to continue the border patrol?" Crowfeather asked coldly, pausing to turn to the apprentice.

The dark ginger tom padded after his mentor in a daze, his thoughts far away from the patrol and the cats around him. Whitetail's words reminded him of a dream he'd had a few sunrises ago. He couldn't remember all of it but remembered the scent of the other clans and a darkness descending upon them. Three cats had shone like the stars but he hadn't gotten a good look at their pelts so he didn't know who they were.

He barely registered the rest of their patrol until they got back to camp to report to Onestar. "No sign of Thunderclan crossing the border and we've remarked the boundary," mewed Whitetail. "Has the patrol that went to the Riverclan border come back yet?"

Foxpaw followed her gaze but couldn't see his father's pelt anywhere. Breezepelt had been leading the patrol and they should be back by now. A stab of worry shot through him. The black warrior wasn't a very good father but the young apprentice loved him all the same. A couple of heartbeats later a young light tabby ran over the hill surrounding the camp, one of her ears were ripped and her left hind leg stuck out at an odd angle.

"Riverclan ambushed us," she gasped in pain. "They came right out of the lake and surrounded us. Too many to fight."

"Good work getting back here, Rabbitpaw," Onestar mewed. "Owlwhisker get a patrol together to help against Riverclan. Emberfoot I want to you to gather some warriors and follow Owlwhisker's patrol and attack from a different direction and a little after."

The two warriors nodded and started to gather a few warriors each. "I want to go," yowled Nightcloud.

"Of course," Owlwhisker flicked his tail to let her know to join his group.

"What about me?" Foxpaw demanded.

"We have to guard the camp just in case Riverclan's plan is to attack here with half our warriors gone," his mother mewed.

The ginger apprentice opened his mouth to argue then snapped it shut nodding reluctantly. He wanted to battle to defend his clan but knew that the best way would be to stay out of the warriors' way. By the look of Rabbitpaw, Riverclan didn't care if they killed any cat.

Leaftail, Antpelt and Furzeclaw joined Owlwhisker's patrol while Sunstrike, Boulderpelt and Whiskerfur went with Emberfoot. With a nod at Onestar the light brown tabby bounded out of the hollow, followed closely by his clan mates.

"I'm glad you're not going to fight in this battle," his sister mewed to him, glancing at Rabbitpaw. "She's only an apprentice and they tried to claw the life out of her and even when we heal her she may still die from the wounds."

The black apprentice padded over to join her mentor, Kestralflight, in applying cobwebs and some salve to help prevent infection. Not wanting to move her they created a nest of feathers and moss around her, finally giving her a couple of poppy seeds to aid her sleep.

Foxpaw shook his head as he watched his sister work. He couldn't imagine living a life like a medicine cats. No fighting for your clan and being around stinking herbs all day, he really didn't understand how his sister did it.

Turning his back on the injured apprentice he clawed his way up the highest side of the camp. From here he could see most of the territory to the lake. Emberfoot separated his patrol from the other, the only indication was a small swaying of the heather that only a trained Windclan cat would notice. At the lake cats moved like shadows, fighting for their lives.

Green eyes followed the first patrol of warriors until they were almost on top of the fighting cats, springing out of their hiding spot to join the battle. Barely a few heart beats later the second patrol was in position. For a moment Foxpaw felt relief he hadn't gone, he always had trouble hiding on the moor because of his ginger pelt and would only be a hindrance.

He watched as the second battle patrol entered the battle, turning the tide on their attackers who finally retreated back over to their side of the border. The red apprentice carefully made his way down from his lookout point when the warriors started heading back to camp.

"We sent them wailing back where they came from," Emberfoot yowled as he ran into camp ahead of the other cats. "They'll think twice about attacking a border patrol from now on."

"Who lead the attack?" Onestar asked.

"Reedwhisker," the gruff mew replied from the back of the line.

The warriors parted and Breezepelt padded to stand in front of his leader. Foxpaw looked his father up and down, his dark pelt full of blood though little of it appeared to be his own and his face twisted in hatred that made the apprentice wince.

"More than half their clan must have been waiting for us; they came right out of the lake. Fox hearted fish faces," the black warrior hissed. "Not willing to take us on honourably and trying to kill Rabbitpaw as she ran for reinforcements."

"You did well holding off those Riverclan warriors on your own Breezepelt," Onestar praised as he leapt onto the Grasshill, a small hill on the wall of the camp. "Did they demand territory? Prey?"

Amber eyes narrowed as the black warrior spat, "they wanted nothing other than to kill us and strike fear into our clan."

A wail broke out among the Windclan warriors. "It's the darkness Starclan predicted," yowled one warrior in panic.

Onestar glanced over all his warriors with cold eyes. "We mustn't let this attack dishearten us."

"We should strike back, it's the last thing they'll be suspected."

Foxpaw narrowed his eyes at his father. If they attacked Riverclan back there would be nothing stopping a war between the two clans and he couldn't see a way out without blood being spilled on both sides. He could feel the very tension in the air and his sister pressed her side against his in comfort.

Every cat was looking up at their leader waiting for his response. "That's a good idea. We'll travel tonight just before moonset, for now no apprentice is to leave camp without a warrior."

Foxpaw shifted his paws and looked down as the rest of the clan purred in agreement. This felt wrong, this wasn't the darkness that was predicted he was sure of it but there was no cat that would listen to a young warrior apprentice. He looked up as Blackpaw nudged him.

"Stop looking so downcast, I thought you'd like the idea of going into battle," she whispered in his ear.

"I like defending the clan," he hissed.

"Aren't you defending the clan by putting Riverclan in their place?" Her amber eyes were wide in puzzlement. "They provoked us first so why can't we defend ourselves against future attacks?"

_Because it feels wrong,_ he yowled in his head. He couldn't explain it to the black apprentice and he wasn't sure if she'd understand if he tried. "I guess you're right," he mewed instead.

Whitetail padded over to them at that moment, looking between the two siblings. "You'd both better eat now so you'll be ready for the hunting patrol with me and Heathertail at sun high," the white she-cat mewed with a small knowing look. "You may be a medicine cat apprentice Blackpaw but you still need training in how to catch prey for the clan."

The red tom nodded respectfully at the clan deputy and picked a rabbit to share with his sister. "Do you think she knows our mother's secret?"

The black she-cat shifted uncomfortably, "she shouldn't have a secret. If she's meeting a cat outside the clan it's against the warrior code. I'd never tell any other cat what she'll show us because she's our mother," she added as Foxpaw hissed softly. "That doesn't mean I have to approve."

They ate the rabbit in silence after that and then shared tongues before it was time for the patrol. Heathertail flicked her tail at them when it was time and Foxpaw jumped up in excitement, not even Blackpaw's darker outlook could drown his curiosity.

Whitetail appeared a moment later and bounded over to the patrol and then out of the camp. Foxpaw followed closely behind the deputy as the climbed the moor, slightly angling towards the trees of Thunderclan. He flicked his ears in surprise as they left clan territory behind and continued on for another few fox lengths.

"You came," a mew sounded to their left.

The ginger apprentice jumped around to gaze at a large, broad shouldered golden tabby tom with shining amber eyes. The tom smelt of Thunderclan and Foxpaw realised he's seen this warrior at gatherings before though he'd never spoken to him before.

"We came here to meet a Thunderclan warrior," Blackpaw screeched.

Heathertail ignored her daughter and instead touched noses with the unknown tom as if they knew each other well. The black apprentice bristled and a snarl appeared on her face. Foxpaw cocked his head sideways in confusion but waited for the older cats to explain. Whitetail sat down beside him, wrapping her tail around her paws.

"This is Lionblaze and as you pointed out already Blackpaw he is a Thunderclan warrior," Heathertail explained, exchanging a nervous glance with the tom.

"I've seen you both at gatherings before," Lionblaze mewed filling in the silence.

"You're Lionblaze?" Foxpaw's eyes widened. "Every clan knows about you're fighting skills."

"He can have all the skills in the world, we shouldn't be here meeting with him," hissed Blackpaw.

"Don't you want to meet your real father?" The Windclan deputy mewed.

Both apprentices froze and stared at the white warrior in disbelief. Turning his green gaze on the large golden tom he noticed some similarities between himself and the great warrior, most noticeably his pelt colour. Only one other cat in the clan had ginger fur but as far as he knew he wasn't related to Weaselfur and every cat around the lake knew Lionblaze shared Firestar's blood and that the clans among the trees had more ginger cats.

He noticed that Blackpaw didn't have Breezepelt's darker amber eyes but the lighter yellow of the Thunderclan warrior, almost identical in colour. The only thing that didn't make sense was Blackpaw's pelt.

"Why is she black?"

"Crowfeather was my father," the tom explained calmly knowing what his son was talking about.

"How can you be sitting here calmly asking question?" the medicine cat apprentice yowled. "This is against the warrior code; we are half clan kits that don't belong to any clan and it's their entire fault."

"The warrior code," Foxpaw spat suddenly. "None of the clans even act like they've heard of the code anymore. None of the stories we were told as kits is what life is like now and everyday another part of the code is broken to fuel some mouse brained fear created by Starclan. What difference does it make if we are half clan cats if we are loyal to our birth clan? Besides you heard Lionblaze he's part Windclan too, which means we are three quarters Windclan and only one part Thunderclan."

"If you're really Crowfeather's son why haven't we heard about it?" Blackpaw wailed, glaring at her brother.

"It's a story best forgotten in the next generation," Whitetail answered with her quiet authority.

Foxpaw flicked his ears in surprise, he wondered how many cats knew that Lionblaze was a half clan warrior and what she-cat from Thunderclan would take his prickly bad tempered mentor as their mate. He had always thought it strange that Nightcloud had fought so hard for Crowfeather as well; perhaps she-cats saw something he didn't in the dark gray warrior.

"What kind of clan deputy are you? You should have stopped this long ago," Blackpaw spat at the white she-cat.

Heathertail opened her mouth angrily to reply to her daughter but Whitetail raised her tail to stop her. The deputy mewed, "Every cat knew of Lionblaze and Heathertail's friendship when they were apprentices, it was obvious at gatherings, but something happened and they fought. I didn't even know they were back together until she came to me one night and admitted that she wasn't pregnant with Breezepelt's kits like she told everyone but with a certain golden tabby tom. I didn't like it, like you've said Blackpaw it is against the warrior code, but I was afraid that if I said anything to Onestar or any other warrior that Breezepelt would come after her for betraying him."

"Breezepelt would never do that. He's a loyal Windclan warrior!" she yowled back.

"He never forgave Crowfeather," Lionblaze whispered, for a moment confusion clouded his eyes. "Not just for having kits with another she-cat, which he didn't even know about until we were already warriors, but for not being a great father to a kit he never wanted, a kit he had to prove his loyalty to his clan mates."

It sounded as if he wasn't saying everything and Foxpaw shivered. What was it the golden warrior wouldn't say?

"Your mentor's a sick cat," Blackpaw hissed, turning to her brother. "How could he have a kit just to prove clan loyalty?"

"Leave Crowfeather alone," Foxpaw snarled, surprised how he wanted to defend his clan mate. "He is more loyal than half the warriors in Windclan. He hasn't killed any cat in cold blood like Breezepelt has and he refuses to hunt on other clan's territories."

The black she-cat stared at her brother in disbelief for a few heart beats before turning and running back to the moor. "We have to catch her, she can't tell the clan," Heathertail mewed urgently, sprinting after her daughter.

"She wouldn't tell them would she? It would be admitting she wasn't a pure blooded clan cat."

Lionblaze's eyes clouded for a moment and he exchanged a knowing glance with Whitetail. "Don't be so sure, she reminds me of my lost sister and following the warrior code meant everything to her."

Foxpaw paused, every cat knew Jayfeather the Thunderclan medicine cat was Lionblaze's brother but no cat had ever mentioned them having a sister. Something else that was best forgotten? He shivered, how many other secrets were around the lake and did they have anything to do with the sudden disregard of the warrior code?

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><p><strong>Will Blackpaw tell the clans about her heritage like Hollyleaf did? <strong>

**Yes, both Whitetail and Foxpaw are noticing that something bad is coming. Whitetail because she is just an observant she-cat and knows this sudden violence has to be linked to something and Foxpaw because of his dream.**

**Hopefully I'll try and update this once every one or two weeks :D**


	3. Chapter 3

**Well here is Chapter 2 of Foxpaw's Destiny!**

**Between that last chapter and this one I read Sign of the Moons and I realise a few things are wrong with the allegiances but anyway I'll work around that XD**

**This is up much faster than I thought it would be but I suddenly had an idea! Anyway thanks go to Lionfire99 and Lifepaw for reviewing and making me want to create this story even faster!**

**This time it's from Blackpaw's pov instead of Foxpaw's but we'll get back to him next chapter :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Warriors, only the cats not seen in the books.**

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><p>Blackpaw padded into camp with a rabbit in her jaws. Heathertail followed her daughter in with a couple of mice.<p>

_Probably learnt how to catch them from Lionblaze._

A part of her thought she was being unreasonable, after all they do have woodland on their territory and she knew that warriors were trained to hunt in them but after hearing how her mother willingly took a mate from another clan she wasn't sure if she could trust Heathertail.

She pointingly turned her back on her mother and deposited her fresh-kill on the pile before heading to the medicine den to check on Rabbitpaw. As her eyes adjusted to the dark area she pricked her ears and sighed in relief when she heard the apprentice's shallow breathes.

She inspected the wounds again and was satisfied that they were healing as well as they could be. Blackpaw could only hope that her old denmate would recover fully. Less than a moon ago there had been a fight on the Thunderclan border and Weaselfur had been injured almost to the point of death. They'd been able to save his life but a long deep cut on one of his front legs never fully healed and he'd had to retire to the elders den.

The black apprentice shivered as she remembered the story of the battle and how Breezepelt saved his clan mate by blinding the old Thunderclan deputy, Brambleclaw. Even thinking about Breezepelt made her sick inside, she'd been so proud to be his daughter but he wasn't her father and only a few cats knew it.

She'd been born outside the warrior code. How could she be a medicine cat if she wasn't pure Windclan?

"No, that's mouse brained. Apparently every older cat knows Jayfeather's a half clan cat and he's a great medicine cat," she whispered to herself.

As long as she was loyal to the medicine cat code and the warrior code it shouldn't matter if she was the kit of a Thunderclan tom. Should it?

"Blackpaw?"

The scent of marigold filled the den as Kestralflight padded in; having gone out looking for the herbs while his apprentice was out hunting.

"We'll need these to re-dress her wounds as well as the other warriors who fought in the battle. How is Rabbitpaw?" he mewed, setting the leaves down in their store.

"She's not any worse than she was before but her breathing is still shallow," Blackpaw replied.

"Good, when she wakes up we'll give her a couple of poppy seeds so she can sleep better, no more than that or it could harm her instead. How did the hunting go?"

"I caught a rabbit," she announced, forcing herself not to bristle. "I paired up with Heathertail. Foxpaw went with Whitetail."

The black apprentice winced as the lie left her mouth. She was already lying to protect her family!

"Good," the mottled grey medicine cat blinked at her warmly. "We'll be going to the gathering tomorrow so make sure you rest tonight. I'll get Weaselfur to watch her while we sleep."

Blackpaw nodded before going to stand beside her mentor and helping him sort through an old pile of cat mint.

A full moon shone high in the sky as Blackpaw emerged from the medicine cat den.

"Remember if anything happens to her and we aren't back yet to get Swallowtail. She should be resting before having her kits but she knows the most about herbs," she heard Kestralflight mew to Eaglepaw, who had volunteered to stay with his sister so the medicine cats could go to the gathering.

"Are you ready for our second gathering?" Foxpaw asked her, racing over from the other side of camp with a gleam in his eyes.

It was as if he didn't care he was half clan. Blackpaw shuffled her paws nervously. What if the other clans found out somehow? Can something like this stay a secret forever? Foxpaw opened his mouth, puzzlement on his face, but was interrupted.

"This'll be my first gathering," Gorsepaw announced, jumping about as if she was a kit and distracting Foxpaw.

There hadn't been a gathering for two whole moons because clouds had covered it and the three newest apprentices had had to wait for over two moons to go to a gathering. Blackpaw sighed sadly, only Gorsepaw would be coming out of her littermates because of Riverclan.

"They'll think this is your first day as an apprentice if you behave like that," Leaftail, Gorsepaw's mentor, mewed lightly, cuffing the young cat over the ears gently.

At that moment Onestar appeared from his den and signalled for his cats to follow him as he ran over the rise at the edge of camp. Blackpaw kept pace with her brother as they ran to the tree bridge. From up on the moorland she could she shadows appear out of Thunderclan's forest and a different clan already crossing over to the lake. She wondered who Thunderclan's new deputy was.

They reached the tree before Thunderclan and Onestar crossed first, leaving Whitetail to trail at the end. For the first time excitement filled the young black apprentice as she took her first pawsteps on the island that night.

"What's that smell?" Gorsepaw mewed as she landed next to Blackpaw, her head cocked sideways.

"That's Shadowclan. See you can smell a dank marshy scent hinted with pines," Blackpaw mewed back.

The medicine cat apprentice waited beside the younger cat as Kestralflight crossed the bridge, watching her brother's red ginger pelt disappear into the ferns.

"Let's go," the grey tom mewed and lead the way into the large clearing on the island.

Only Shadowclan were there, looking ruffled but not overly hostile towards the Windclan cats. _Maybe that's because we don't share borders. _

She recognised LIttlecloud's small body sitting next to Rowanclaw. Her paws instinctively wanted to pad over to him and it confused her. She'd been told stories about how every cat used to mingle at gatherings from Tornear and the senior warriors, especially the medicine cats, but at the last gathering almost no cat had dared drift from their clan mates.

Heathertail and Breezepelt stood sat side by side near the great tree. It wasn't right that Breezepelt couldn't know she wasn't his daughter. Should she tell him if no other cat would?

"Look Thunderclan has finished crossing the tree," Foxpaw whispered, appearing beside her.

His green eyes were glowing as he caught sight of Lionblaze and it still amazed her how easily he had gotten used to the fact that the golden warrior was their father. Blackpaw glanced back at her mother and saw she was whispering softly to the black warrior, completely ignoring her real mate.

"Where is Mistystar? We can't wait here forever," a yowl came from the branches of the tree and Blackpaw could just make out the white fur of Blackstar.

"They had just arrived at the tree as we finished crossing," a golden brown Thunderclan warrior the young apprentice didn't know mewed.

Barely heart beats passed before the first Riverclan warrior entered the clearing, glaring at the Windclan cats.

"What's gotten up their fur? They attacked us!" Blackpaw hissed and noticed her brother flick one of his ears uncomfortably.

Curiosity sheered her fur, there was something Foxpaw wasn't telling her.

"Welcome to the gathering," Firestar yowled. "Who would like to start?"

"I will," Blackstar mewed. "Since we last met Dawnpelt has moved to the nursery and is expecting kits. She'll be due to give birth any day now according to Littlecloud. The two legs have returned to the lake, as I'm sure you've noticed, but other than being on the half bridge they are no threat to Shadowclan."

The white leader gave a swift glance to Firestar and Blackpaw noticed the other Thunderclan warriors start to bristle.

_I wonder what that's about_.

With a nod from the Shadowclan leader, Onestar stood up. "We have named three new apprentices, Gorsepaw, Rabbitpaw and Eaglepaw."

He paused as the Windclan cats called out the young cats names, along with a couple of yowls from the other clans.

"I can only see one new apprentice. Where are the other two?" A dark tabby Shadowclan warrior demanded.

"They are back in camp, Rabbitpaw was gravely wounded in a battle against Riverclan and is fighting for her life and her brother, Eaglepaw decided to watch over her. A battle, I might add, that was unjustified and only proved to spill blood."

"It wasn't unjustified," the Riverclan deputy, Reedwhisker, hissed. The rest of the Riverclan cats yowled their agreement.

Onestar snorted in disbelief. "Don't you believe my deputy Onestar?" Mistystar growled, her normally calm appearance replaced by one of the scariest things Blackpaw had seen. "Maybe you should be looking at your own clan for traitors and liars instead of calling out against a different clan."

"What are you going on about?"

"A moon and a half ago Mothwing went out for some herbs near the marshy area close to the horse place and she never came back. When we sent out a search party they found her dead with your clan's scent all over the place," she snarled and a few cats gasped in horror. Blackpaw turned to look for Whillowshine and saw the grey tabby lower her head sadly.

Kestraflight tensed and gazed sadly over at the Riverclan she-cat. Blackpaw spotted Littlecloud staring at his paws and Jayfeather blinking his blind eyes in Willowshine's direction. She'd been taught by Kestralflight that Starclan had decreed that the medicine cats could no longer help one another but looking at them now she could see how hard that was for them to do.

"Are you accusing my clan of killing a medicine cat?" Onestar yowled furiously. "Every cat knows that's against the warrior code."

Mistystar forced her fur down and gazed at him with calm eyes, "haven't you noticed that the warrior code is disappearing. One of your own cats came to me and told me that they saw your own cats murdering Mothwing as if it was planned. Not only that but for any cat to know where she had gone they would have had to be spying on our camp."

Onestar froze, Blackpaw wondered if it was at the she-cat's icy calm tone or her words. From the corner of her eyes she saw a Riverclan cat look terrified. Kestralflight had pointed him out as Hollowmist last time and she couldn't work out what made him look like that. Obviously he had known his medicine cat had died so what else could it be?

"If there is a traitor in my clan I'll deal with them myself," he finally hissed.

_He hasn't killed any cat in cold blood like Breezepelt has. _The words her brother had mewed the day before suddenly echoed through her head. She hadn't paid much attention to them then but now that's all she could hear.

"You know something," she hissed to the young tom so no other cat could hear.

His bright green eyes widened and she could feel his guilt. "I'll talk to you later about it ok?"

She nodded and realised she'd missed the rest of Onestar's report, though she did notice that he didn't mention that Weaselfur had been permanently wounded and moved to be with Tornear.

"Willowshine is the new medicine cat," Mistystar yowled. "We have two new apprentices, Rainpaw and Stormpaw and Hollowmist has finally become a warrior."

The dark brown tom dipped his head but his eyes still betrayed his unease. Blackpaw knew that the warrior had gotten some mysterious injuries during his apprenticeship and it had taken many moons for them to recover. She glanced at Antpelt and remembered the story her mentor had told her about the warrior, he'd almost died from similar injuries.

When the blue grey cat finished speaking, Firestar started to speak. "Over these last few moons we have had plenty of prey and even the twolegs with their small green dens can't affect our hunters." The flame pelted tom gazed down at the golden brown warrior that Blackpaw hadn't recognised at the beginning of the gathering. "Brackenfur is the new deputy of Thunderclan."

A tortoiseshell she-cat stood up from near the front, looking troubled. "What happened to Brambleclaw?"

"He was blinded during a battle with Windclan, he's moved to the elders den," Firestar spoke gently to the Shadowclan warrior.

She bowed her head in grief. Why is a Shadowclan she-cat worried about a cat from another clan? The gathering started to break up. Blackpaw paused when she saw Foxpaw padding over to Lionblaze and a grey she-cat calmly.

"You're Foxpaw aren't you? Heathertail and Breezepelt's kit?" The grey warrior mewed.

"Yeah I am," the young cat looked down as if in embarrassment.

"I'm Cinderheart and this is Lionblaze. Don't worry if he snaps at you, he can have a pretty sharp tongue."

"Don't worry my mentor is Crowfeather and I don't think any cat could outdo him."

Blackpaw heard Cinderheart purr in amusement. "It's nice to see an apprentice who isn't afraid to talk to the warriors from other clans. No cat seems to like talking to each other anymore. I miss the old days when every cat would mingle around after the gathering."

"Eavesdropping on your brother?"

Blackpaw jumped as she heard the mew just behind her. Turning she gazed into Jayfeather's sightless eyes in surprise. "How could you tell?"

He shrugged, "I can just tell these things. I know about Lionblaze and I don't want you to make the same mistake our sister made. It would only hurt your clan and create an even bigger war. I watched the stars when you were born; each of you has a great destiny a head. I couldn't tell what they were but I know if you revealed who your father really is then all the clans will be lost."

The black medicine cat apprentice bristled in alarm. Is Jayfeather crazy? No, she could hear the truth in his words.

"I will keep the secret for as long as it doesn't endanger my clan," she whispered, flinching at a promise to protect something that was against the warrior code.

Then again Mistystar had said it was disappearing. _No, the warrior code is as old as the clans it would never disappear so quickly if ever_.

"Windclan, we're leaving," Onestar called out from the edge of the clearing.

Blackpaw nodded at Jayfeather and bounded away.

"Yeah, goodbye to you too," she heard him hiss in annoyance.

Only then did she remember he was blind and didn't see her nod but she didn't have time to go back and hoped the grumpy medicine cat wasn't too unhappy with her. Foxpaw and Gorsepaw ran over from a couple of Shadowclan apprentices and fell in beside her.

"I can't believe I got to meet Lionblaze," the light grey she-cat mewed, her pelt fluffed out in excitement. "If we'd stayed longer you would've totally beaten Snakepaw."

"Were you fighting?" Blackpaw mewed crossly.

"Of course not," Foxpaw snorted. "We were practicing some moves to see who could fight better, claws sheathed. Is that against the warrior code?"

"I guess not," she admitted.

They had arrived at the tree and made the rest of the way back to camp in silence. Blackpaw was suddenly aware of the apprehensive atmosphere that surrounded the warriors.

"Whitetail, Kestralflight and Blackpaw I want you three to stay here with me. Breezepelt make sure the rest of you get back to camp."

The black warrior nodded and ran at the head of the patrol with his tail held high.

"Have either of you had any signs from Starclan?"

Onestar looked hopefully at them. "I haven't had a sign since Starclan told me that all clans must fend for themselves," Kestralflight looked thoughtful. "If one of our clan mates is a traitor to the code or the clan I don't think they would tell us unless they were a danger to us."

"How about you?"

Feeling her leader's burning gaze on her, Blackpaw glanced away. She hadn't had any signs since she'd been made a medicine cat apprentice and gone to the Moonpool but if Foxpaw knew more than he was telling then the cat they knew as her father had something to do with it.

_No, Breezepelt has raised me as his kit so I'll treat him as my father. I barely know Lionblaze, it's the cat that's raises you that's important .I'll keep it a secret but I'm not going to act like it's true!_

"No, I haven't received any signs either," she mewed.

_I can't betray my father and I should talk to Foxpaw first before spreading rumours._

"I guess we'll have to find out without Starclan's help," the deputy mewed.

"Is it possible to watch all our warriors at once?" Kestralflight questioned.

"No, but we can try," mewed Onestar. "Until we can think of a better idea or Starclan have spoken to us."

All the cats agreed and padded back to camp. Blackpaw itched to talk to her brother but he was curled up next to his den mate, fast asleep and she didn't want to get yelled at for waking him. Heathertail padded up to her, placing her muzzle against the apprentice's ear.

"Goodnight, Blackpaw," the light brown she-cat mewed gently.

Blackpaw unsheathed her claws and glared at her mother. She would keep her betrayal a secret but that didn't mean she would talk to her. As far as she was concerned only Breezepelt and Foxpaw were her family now.

She went into her den without a word to the warrior and lay on the other side of Rabbitpaw, Eaglepaw had fallen asleep next to his sister on the one side. With barely a look at her patient she wrapped her tail around her paws and closed her eyes, falling into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

><p><strong>So Blackpaw's found a solution to being half clan, pretending she's Breezepelt's kit anyway! <strong>

**I thought I'd better explain why Weaselfur and Brambleclaw were both 'elders' now and why Mothwing wasn't the Riverclan medicine cat anymore.**


End file.
